Jayson Tatum has had an impressive seven years in the NBA.

With two All-NBA First Team selections and five All-Star nods under his belt, the 26-year-old forward is one of the best players on the 54-14 Celtics team and is still a strong candidate for league MVP.

In addition to his personal successes, Tatum’s presence in Boston has brought a new age of competition for the legendary NBA team.

Since Tatum was selected third overall in the 2017 NBA Draft, the Celtics have advanced to the playoffs each season. In 2022, they reached the NBA Finals, and on four occasions before that, they reached the Eastern Conference Finals.Some of the criticism leveled against Tatum has indeed focused on the fact that the Celtics have never been able to overcome adversity, particularly in the 2022 Finals against the Warriors. In that six-game series, Tatum shot just 36.7% from the floor and averaged 21.5 points per game, leading to a devastating loss on the biggest stage in basketball.

Despite the fact that Tatum and the Celtics have yet to win a title, LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers doesn’t think that should diminish Tatum’s status as a top player in the NBA.

James stated on his new podcast with JJ Redick, “Mind The Game,” that while JT has had a successful career thus far, they have high expectations for him. Everyone is rooting for him to finally succeed. However, to reach four conference finals and one finals before turning 26 is to be considered elite. They’re in a position to make another title run, and he’s been getting better.

Despite Tatum’s long history of being a target of criticism after a string of disappointing playoff exits, James did note that a number of NBA greats did not win a championship until they were far into their thirties.

According to James, Tatum has been to the conference finals four times and the NBA Finals once. He is 26 years old. I was 28 years old when I finally won one. Nikola Jokic probably earned his first one when he was 27 years old. Also, I believe Michael Jordan was 28 years old.

The stаff pitches in, bringing in Kristаps Pоrzingis аnd Jrue Hоlidаy in exchаnge fоr sоme Lаy’s pоtаtо chips. Yeаh, thаt’s helpful tоо. Withоut а dоubt, JT is the mаn tо beаt оut while scоuting fоr the Bоstоn Bruins.

The influence of Porzingis and Holiday on the Boston Celtics this season is evident from the results, but the Celtics didn’t exactly part with a bag of Lay’s to get their hands on those superstars.

Last summer, under Brad Stevens’s busy tutelage, the Celtics traded away Robert Williams, Malcolm Brogdon, and Marcus Smart to acquire Porzingis and Holiday.

The three ex-Celtics have had a rough go of it this season, to be sure.

An abused With the Grizzlies dealing with multiple severe injuries, Smart has played in just 20 games this season. Williams, on the other hand, had season-ending knee surgery after playing in just six games for the Trail Blazers. After appearing in 39 games for the Trail Blazers, Brogdon was sidelined last month due to an elbow ailment.